Can with dual closure system



Dec. 6, 1966 R. B. GANUNG 3,289,881

CAN WITH DUAL CLOSURE SYSTEM Filed March 19, 1965 7 52 5a 60 IIIIIIIIIF 58 E 652 54 i I 58 IIVVE/VTOI? T 58 ROBERT B. an NW6 Eii/ United States Patent 3,289,881 CAN WITH DUAL CLOSURE SYSTEM Robert B. Ganung, Glen Ellyn, Ill., assignor to National Can Corporation, Chicago, 111., a corporation of Delaware Filed Mar. 19, 1965, Ser. No. 441,033 Claims. (Cl. 220-60) The present invention relates to a container, and particularly to a container for paints of the so-called tinting base white type. Substantially all of the paint cans in use in commerce in this country are of the so-called tin can type which include a removable top cover or, as referred to in the can industry, a plug of the so-called Double tite or Triple tite type.

The purpose of having a plug of this sort, the construction features of which will be referred to herein in greater detail, is that it is desirable to afford an extremely tight seal upon reclosure of a paint can. In addition, a commercially desirable paint can contains a ring around the top exterior edge portions thereof which provides a desirable and drip-free, simple means of wiping excess paint from the brush.

With the advent of newly developed paints, particularly those paints of the so-called latex or water emulsion type, a great increase in the sales of so-called tinting base white paint has occurred.

In the tinting base paint system, a standard latex paint of a white color is packaged in gallon, half-gallon and like size paint containers, and this paint is adapted to be tinted, at the place of retail sale, by the addition thereto of colloidally dispersed, highly concentrated pigments. Thus, a potential customer selects the color he desires from a color chart containing hundreds of color selections, and the paint store employee, following the directions on a chart supplied to him, mixes these concentrated colorants in given proportions, adding them directly to the tinting base white paint. Thus, for example, a typical color might have of an ounce of red, of an ounce of yellow, and of an ounce of pure black color added thereto to produce the particular paint color desired. The colorants are injected, one by one, into the can of paint after the Triple tite plug has been removed therefrom, and, after the plug is replaced, the paint is shaken thoroughly to mix the colorants into the tinting base white paint. However, one drawback has characterized this system, and that has been that it is extremely difficult to open a Triple tite or like can without undesirably bending, denting or tearing certain portions of the edge of the plug. Paint cans with damaged plugs or rings present an unfavorable appearance to the customer, and the appearance of such containers may create sales resistance.

In addition, upon removal of such plugs, paint is often, it not always, adhered thereto, and as a result, the trough in the ring supporting the plug fills with paint, and, upon replacing the plug, paint is undesirably spread about the exterior of the ring and the plug. In view of the construction of the trough, it is not practical to attempt removing he paint therefrom, in order to present a clean, paint-free and dripless can of paint to the consumer for taking with him.

The present invention, however, simply and economically overcomes the disadvantages of this matter by providing a small and preferably generally centrally disposed resilient, removable and replaceable, paint-tight second closure for the Triple tite plug. In this way, tinting colorants may be added directly to the can by removing this closure, and replacing it after coloring the paint. Thereafter the can is sold and the problems referred to above have been eliminated, while the other advantages of the normal closing system have been retained.

Additional objects and advantages of the present invention and the manner of their attainment will be more apparent when considered in conjunction with a description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention as set forth in the specification and claims herein, and as shown in the drawings in which like numerals designate corresponding parts throughout, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view of the container of the present invention shown with portions thereof broken away;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view, with portions broken away, of a portion of the plug member of the invention, showing the colorant opening and sealing grommet in the plug FIG. 3 'is a top plan view of a portion of the plug, shown without the grommet unit of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a bottom plan view of the portion of the plug shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a vertical sectional view of a portion of the container of the present invention, showing the central grommet removed;

FIG. 6 is a greatly enlarged vertical sectional view of the central portion of the plug shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a vertical sectional view of the grommet when removed from the plug.

Referring now to the drawings in greater detail, there is generally indicated a container 10 having side walls forming a body 12, and a bottom portion or end 14 fixedly secured in liquid-tight relation to the body 12 by means of a conventional double seam 16. At the top of the body 12, around the outer peripheral edges there of, a body hook portion 18 is fixedly secured to a cover hook portion 20 of the cover ring 22. The ring 22 includes a radially outer and inner sealing surface 24, 26 respectively, forming a trough 28 therebetween. A third, inwardly facing sealing surface 30 is formed by a rolled bead on the ring 22.

This ring 22 is adapted to support, in removable but liquid-tight relation, a plug 32. This plug is characterized by a radially outermost curled edge 34, radially outer and central sealing surfaces 36 and 38 respectively, and a bottom surface 40, and additionally includes an outwardly facing, innermost sealing surface 42. An upwardly facing bight or U-shaped central wall portion 44 connects the innermost sealing surface 42 with the central sealing surface 38. As shown in the drawings, it will be appreciated that the can plug 32 includes at least three sealing surfaces which are complementary to the three corresponding surfaces provided in the ring. Because these three separate sealing surfaces are provided on any radially outer cross section of the can, this socalled Triple tite plug is very difficult to remove in use, giving rise to the difiiculties in removal and replacement referred to above.

In accordance with the present invention, the can plug includes a slightly downwardly directed flange portion .6 having inner marginal edge portions 48 which define a central opening 50 in the plug 32. A removable grommet seal 52 is inserted in the opening 50 and this grommet includes sealing surfaces 54, 56 adapted to engage the flange and edge portion 46, 48 of the opening 50. In addition, a bottom surface 58 of the grommet 52 bears against the top portion of the can plug 32. The sealing surface 54, 56 of the grommet 52 are distended into the shape shown in FIG. 6 in use, but when the grommet is not inserted in the can, such surfaces are in the shape of a somewhat rectangular channel 60 (FIG. 7).

Additionally, a finger grasping tab member 62 is provided to facilitate removal of the grommet. In the operation of the device, as described above, the sales person removes the grommet 52 and inserts the tinting coloring through the opening 50, thereafter replacing the grommet 3 52 without disturbing the ring and plug seating surface, as was described in greater detail above. I

The construction of all the can materials herein is conventional, namely the can body 12 comprises electrolytically tinplated steel of about so-called 90 lb. (0.099"), the bottom end 14 is tinplated steel of about 95 lb. base Weight (0.105") and the plug 32 is 100 1b. metal (0.110). The plug 52 may be constructed of a synthetic rubber material, or, in the alternative a material with some resilience, such as an ABS material (acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene) interpolymer material, or a polyethylene, or the like. Inasmuch as this grommet is normally removed in use only once or twice, it need not have the resilience provided by rubber, which is operable, but somewhat more expensive than the plastics referred to above.

By reason of the provision for the sealing surface 56 on the plug, and the general shape of the channel 60 of the grommet 52, any possibility of contamination of latex paint by the raw metal edge 48 of the can is prevented. Thus, manufacture of these can plugs 32 is simplified because no separate protective coating step is necessary after cutting the opening 50.

A further advantage resides in the fact that in the event some paint is nevertheless spilled near the opening 50, the fiat contour of the plug 32 adjacent the opening 50 simplifies Wiping the paint from this area.

It will thus be seen that the present invention provides a novel can with dual closure system having novel advantages and characteristics, including those hereinbefore pointed out and others which are inherent in the invention.

It is also understood that certain modifications of the can with dual closure system of the present invention may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A container of the type described, including,

(a) a cylindrical main body portion, and, fixedly attached to one end thereof in liquid-tight relation,

(b) an irnperforate end member, and, fixedly attached 4 to the other end of said cylinder in liquid-tight relation,

(c) a relatively rigid, plug-supporting ring member,

said ring member including a plurality of concentrically disposed axially extending sealing surfaces, and, removably attached to said ring member in liquid-tight relation,

(d) a relatively rigid plug member with radially inwardly extending sealing surfaces defining an opening therein and including a plurality of axially extending, sealing surfaces adapted to mate in complementary relation with said sealing surfaces on said ring member, and, removably disposed in said opening in said cap member,

(e) a removable, relatively flexible grommet unit having sealing surfaces thereon adapted to mate in complementary liquid-tight sealing relation with said radially inwardly extending sealing surfaces in said plug member.

2. A container as defined in claim 1 in which said ring includes at least one trough member formed by a bight connecting two radially adjacently disposed sealing surfaces.

3. A container as defined in claim 1 in which said grommet unit is comprised of a rubber material.

4. A container as defined in claim 1 in which said grommet unit is comprised of a plastic material.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,719,628 10/1955 Ivanoff 206-47 3,168,961 2/1965 Yates 220- 3,200,986 8/1965 La Grutta 22060 LOUIS G. MANCENE, Primary Examiner.

THERON E. CONDON, JAMES B. MARBERT,

Examiners. 

1. A CONTAINER OF THE TYPE DESCRIBED, INCLUDING, (A) A CYLINDRICAL MAIN BODY PORTION, AND, FIXEDLY ATTACHED TO ONE END THEREOF IN LIQUID-TIGHT RELATION, (B) AN IMPERFORATE END MEMBER, AND, FIXEDLY ATTACHED TO THE OTHER END OF SAID CYLINDER IN LIGHT-TIGHT RELATION, (C) A RELATIVELY RIGID, PLUG-SUPPORTING RING MEMBER, SAID RING MEMBER INCLUDING A PLURALITY OF CONCENTRICALLY DISPOSED AXIALLY EXTENDING SEALING SURFACES, AND, REMOVABLY ATTACHED TO SAID RING MEMBER IN LIQUID-TIGHT RELATION, (D) A RELATIVELY RIGID PLUG MEMBER WITH RADIALLY INWARDLY EXTENDING SEALING SURFACE DEFINING AN OPENING THEREIN AND INCLUDING A PLURALITY OF AXIALLY EXTENDING, SEALING SURFACES ADAPTED TO MATE IN COMPLEMENTARY RELATION WITH SAID SEALING SURFACES ON SAID RING MEMBER, AND, REMOVABLY DISPOSED IN SAID OPENING IN SAID CAP MEMBER, (E) A REMOVABLE, RELATIVELY FLEXIBLE GROMMET UNIT HAVING SEALING SURFACES THEREON ADAPTED TO MATE IN COMPLEMENTARY LIQUID-TIGHT SEALING RELATION WITH SAID RADIALLY INWARDLY EXTENDING SEALING SURFACES IN SAID PLUG MEMBER. 